Posts

2013 Reading: Daring Greatly by Brene Brown

The fear of failure can be paralyzing, but so can the fear of already having failed–which is shame. So many people are immobilized by poor self-image, whether it is about appearance or performance. And we experience this sort of trauma from an early age, when people call us names, or parents/teachers/coaches belittle us for doing poorly in school or on the sports field. And the shame feeds on itself, making it harder to overcome.

On the other hand, if we can get past the shame and embrace vulnerability, we can achieve beyond our expectations. And, after all, you can’t win if you don’t play the game.

The title of the book comes from a wonderful quotation from Theodore Roosevelt’s speech “Citizenship in a Republic.” And what I liked about the book is that it isn’t all about feeling better about yourself, which many pop-psychology books seem to be. This book actually offers suggestions for empowering others, including your students, colleagues, and children.

About

Clifford Garstang is a fiction writer and former international lawyer. His first novel, THE SHAMAN OF TURTLE VALLEY, will be published in March 2019. His novel in stories, WHAT THE ZHANG BOYS KNOW, won the Library of Virginia Literary Award for Fiction. He is also the author of a story collection, IN AN UNCHARTED COUNTRY, and the editor of three anthologies, EVERYWHERE STORIES: SHORT FICTION FROM A SMALL PLANET, Volumes I, II, and III.

Cliff's Upcoming Events

Virginia Festival of the BookWednesday, 20 March 2019 Cliff will be moderating two fiction panels at the 2019 Virginia Festival of the Book. Times, Dates, and Locations TBA.@ Charlottesville, VA

High Road FestivalSaturday, 23 March 2019 Cliff will be speaking at Press 53's High Road Festival of Poetry and Short Fiction in Winston-Salem, NC.@ Marriott Hotel, Winston-Salem NC

AWP Conference Wednesday, 27 March 2019 Cliff will be signing books at various times TBA during the Book Fair at the AWP Conference in Portland OR.